New Players in the Middle East Peace

Published 8:00 pm, Friday, February 8, 2002

_Ahmed Qureia, speaker of the Palestinian parliament. Also known as Abu Ala, Qureia would become interim leader of the Palestinian Authority should Arafat step down. He was a principal negotiator throughout the Oslo peace process, and has close relations with leading Israeli politicians. He hopes to bridge Palestinian demands for an Israeli recognition of the right of refugees to return with Israeli concerns that any return would swamp Israel.

_Mahmoud Abbas, secretary-general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization. Known as Abu Mazen, Abbas would succeed Arafat as PLO chairman. Like Qureia, he is also a principal Oslo negotiator; he was the first leading Palestinian, in 1995, to accept Israel's claim to parts of east Jerusalem.

_Jibril Rajoub and Mohammed Dahlan, heads of Palestinian security in the West Bank and Gaza, respectively. They have earned respect for time served in Israeli prisons before the peace process was launched. Each learned Hebrew in prison and used it to establish closer ties with Israeli counterparts. They are among the few Palestinians who have maintained regular contact with Israelis throughout the recent violence. Dahlan urged Arafat to accept the outlines of an Israeli proposal at the 2000 peace talks. Arafat balked.

_Marwan Barghouti: A leader of Arafat's Fatah faction of the PLO, Barghouti was seen as a moderate before the outbreak of violence in September 2000; since then, the Israelis say he is one of its principal engineers and have called for his arrest. His enthusiasm for fighting the Israelis has made him a hero of the uprising.

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Israelis:

_Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, defense minister and leader of the moderate Labor Party, now in an uneasy coalition with Ariel Sharon's Likud. A former brigadier general, "Fuad," as he is known, also believes in isolating Yasser Arafat _ for now. Still, he says Arafat remains the only figure who can rally the Palestinians to peace. He believes ultimately in much broader sovereignty for the Palestinians than does Sharon.

_Benjamin Netanyahu, prime minister from 1996 to 1999. As prime minister, he slowed Israeli concessions to the Palestinians to a virtual standstill, saying Arafat was not doing enough to crack down on militants _ and now he says even the little he conceded then was too generous.